الفهرس 
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Abstract
Cough is one of the most common symptoms in all respiratory diseases. It is important to provide healthcare professionals with useful clinical information such as frequency, severity and nature of cough to have a better diagnosis and hence better treatment.In the clinic coughs are usually identified by their cause, e.g. due to gastro-oesophageal reflux, asthma, postnasal drip etc., or are termed idiopathic. They may be defined by their characteristics, e.g. wet, moist, hacking or chesty, terms that cannot be scientifically identified or quantitated. They may be acute, subacute or chronic.Productive Cough is also termed as an effective cough and wet cough, since it effectively expels secretions, mucous or foreign material from the respiratory tract. This type of cough is mostly acute in nature and often caused by bacterial or viral or fungal infection.Non-productive Cough is also named as an ineffective cough since it won’t bring any secretions or mucous from the lungs. It is a dry, irritating cough without phlegm. Mostly, this type of cough is chronic in nature and caused by dry irritation or dust or smoke or fumes, or due to edema and mild secretion in the resolving stage of illness.Acute cough is often the result of an upper respiratory tract infection and although distressing it is usually self limiting and does not require any medical intervention. An acute cough is defined as one lasting less than three weeks.Chronic cough is one which lasts more than 8 weeks and accounts for one-tenth of respiratory referrals to secondary care. Cough lasting between three to eight weeks is defined as subacute cough.Cough is one of the most common symptoms in all respiratory diseases. It is important to provide healthcare professionals with useful clinical information such as frequency, severity and nature of cough to have a better diagnosis and hence better treatment.In the clinic coughs are usually identified by their cause, e.g. due to gastro-oesophageal reflux, asthma, postnasal drip etc., or are termed idiopathic. They may be defined by their characteristics, e.g. wet, moist, hacking or chesty, terms that cannot be scientifically identified or quantitated. They may be acute, subacute or chronic.Productive Cough is also termed as an effective cough and wet cough, since it effectively expels secretions, mucous or foreign material from the respiratory tract. This type of cough is mostly acute in nature and often caused by bacterial or viral or fungal infection.Non-productive Cough is also named as an ineffective cough since it won’t bring any secretions or mucous from the lungs. It is a dry, irritating cough without phlegm. Mostly, this type of cough is chronic in nature and caused by dry irritation or dust or smoke or fumes, or due to edema and mild secretion in the resolving stage of illness.Acute cough is often the result of an upper respiratory tract infection and although distressing it is usually self limiting and does not require any medical intervention. An acute cough is defined as one lasting less than three weeks.Chronic cough is one which lasts more than 8 weeks and accounts for one-tenth of respiratory referrals to secondary care. Cough lasting between three to eight weeks is defined as subacute cough.Cough is one of the most common symptoms in all respiratory diseases. It is important to provide healthcare professionals with useful clinical information such as frequency, severity and nature of cough to have a better diagnosis and hence better treatment.In the clinic coughs are usually identified by their cause, e.g. due to gastro-oesophageal reflux, asthma, postnasal drip etc., or are termed idiopathic. They may be defined by their characteristics, e.g. wet, moist, hacking or chesty, terms that cannot be scientifically identified or quantitated. They may be acute, subacute or chronic.Productive Cough is also termed as an effective cough and wet cough, since it effectively expels secretions, mucous or foreign material from the respiratory tract. This type of cough is mostly acute in nature and often caused by bacterial or viral or fungal infection.Non-productive Cough is also named as an ineffective cough since it won’t bring any secretions or mucous from the lungs. It is a dry, irritating cough without phlegm. Mostly, this type of cough is chronic in nature and caused by dry irritation or dust or smoke or fumes, or due to edema and mild secretion in the resolving stage of illness.Acute cough is often the result of an upper respiratory tract infection and although distressing it is usually self limiting and does not require any medical intervention. An acute cough is defined as one lasting less than three weeks.Chronic cough is one which lasts more than 8 weeks and accounts for one-tenth of respiratory referrals to secondary care. Cough lasting between three to eight weeks is defined as subacute cough.Gastro-oesophageal reflux is a cause of cough in as much as 40% of cases. “Silent acid reflux” has been described in patients who do not demonstrate the usual symptoms of heartburn and instead present with laryngeal symptoms such as cough and dysphonia.Post nasal drip refers to the sensation of nasal secretions at the back of the throat (or of a ‘drip’), often resulting in the need to clear the throat and is associated with nasal stuffiness or nasal discharge. It is also often referred to as ‘nasal catarrh’ or ‘mucus in the throat’ . The diagnosis of PND-induced cough is made by symptom history, physical examination, radiological findings and response to therapy.Cough variant asthma: Asthma is a respiratory disease that involves variable air-flow obstruction because of inflammatory factors. The principle symptoms of asthma are shortness of breath and wheezing as a general rule, but in patients with cough variant asthma (CVA), these cardinal signs of asthma are often absent.Assessment of cough: careful clinical History and physical examination may provide important diagnostic clues that allow for targeted therapeutic trials without the need for further inverstigations.Treatments of cough depend on the types of cough. Dry coughs are treated with cough suppressants (antitussives) that suppress the urge to cough, while productive coughs (those that produce phlegm) are treated with expectorants that loosen mucus from the respiratory tract.